Instead of going to church, many American Christians now belong to house churches.

Unlike church buildings where congregations sit through sermons, house churches consist of 12 to 15 people who share what’s going on in their lives, often turning to Scriptures for guidance. They rely on the Holy Spirit or spontaneity to guide their weekly gatherings.

House church proponents claim they’re sort of a throwback to the early Christian church in that they have no clergy and everyone is expected to contribute to the teaching, singing and praying.

The Barna Group, a firm specializing in surveys on religion, estimates that 6 million to 12 million Americans attend house churches. A survey last year by the Pew Forum found that 9 percent of American Protestants worship only at home services.